Neighborhood Association

There will be a commissioner’s committee of the whole meeting held on Tuesday, June 20, 2017, at the Candler Library at 5:30pm. Main discussion will be raises for the police officers with public discussion at 6:30pm.

Please try to attend this important meeting and have the opportunity for input.

Please see below for an update from the DeKalb Chamber about what’s going on in our community.

On last week the Georgia General Assembly closed out week 5 of the session. Our legislators will be on recess tomorrow and will resume legislative business on Tuesday Feb. 14.

The chamber staff and I hope to see you on Monday February 27th for our Annual Day at the Capitol. All chambers across DeKalb have been invited to participate. DeKalb Chamber Day at the Capitol.

I will be following up with CEO Thurmond’s new County Lobbyist to provide an overview of the county’s legislative agenda and transportation update.

2017 Legislative Update
Week 5 – February 10, 2017

The General Assembly completed Day 16 of the 2017 Legislative Session on Friday, February 10th. The legislature will be in recess on Monday and will re-convene on Tuesday, February 14th for Legislative Day 17. The legislature will be in session Tuesday through Friday of next week and crossover day remains scheduled for March 3.

Budget

The Senate passed the Supplemental Budget, HB 43, with minor changes that will be resolved between the two chambers. The 2018 Budget, HB44, continues to be heard by the appropriations subcommittees of the House.

Business & Industry

HB 192 sponsored by Rep. Beth Beskin (R-Atlanta), aims to return Georgia to an environment that facilitates reasonable decisions by corporate directors and officers. It also encourages companies to incorporate in Georgia, thereby creating opportunities for further economic growth. HB 192 was heard in the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Friday, February 10.

HB 199 sponsored by Rep. Trey Rhodes (R- Greensboro), is an income tax credit incentive to entertainment companies such as video game and postproduction. The bill is intended to jumpstart emerging companies by making capital more readily available when they may need it most. The bill was heard in the Ways and Means Income Tax Subcommitee on Wednesday, February 8.

SB 85 sponsored by Sen. Rick Jeffares (R – McDonough) is a compromise reached between the Georgia Beer Wholesalers and the craft beer industry which will allow breweries in Georgia to make limited direct sales of their product to their customers. The bill caps the total amount of direct sales by each brewer to 3000 barrels per year and allows a customer to purchase a case of beer per day directly from the brewery for take-out from the premises. On-site sales of beer are allowed as well. This effort is designed to help the craft beer industry to continue to grow in Georgia and should be beneficial to both the wholesalers and brewers. The bill passed out of the Alcohol and Tobacco Subcommittee on Thursday and awaits a hearing in the full House Regulated Industries Committee.

Economic Development

HB 155 sponsored by Rep. Amy Carter (R – Valdosta), the “Georgia Musical Investment Act” offers a 20 – 25% income tax credit for projects that are recorded in Georgia or for tours that invest in the state above a threshold dollar amount. The bill is awaiting action in the House Ways and Means Committee.

SB 2 sponsored by Sen. Mike Dugan (R – Carrollton), the FAST Act – Fairness, Accountability, Simplification and Transparency – empowering our small businesses to succeed, aims to reduce regulations and licensing requirements on small businesses. The bill was heard in the Senate Economic Development and Tourism Committee on Tuesday, February 7 and is awaiting further action.

SB 79 sponsored by Sen. Brandon Beach (R – Alpharetta), allows for two “destination resorts” in Georgia and creates the Georgia Gaming Commission. The legislation requires a two billion dollar minimum investment in an Atlanta resort and 450 million dollars required for the unspecified second location. The bill was heard in the Senate Regulated Industries committee for the first time on Thursday, February 11.

Healthcare

SB 70 sponsored by Sen. Butch Miller (R – Gainesville), would renew the Hospital Provider Payment Program also known as the hospital Medicaid financing program that provides for the continuation of a charge by hospitals statewide which will be pooled to assist in drawing down federal Medicaid matching funds. The current Program is set to sunset on June 30, 2017 so this bill extends the program until June 30, 2020. The House Passed SB70 with a vote of 152-14 on Friday, February 10 and now awaits the Governor’s signature.

SB 81 sponsored by Sen. Renee Unterman (R – Burford), is aimed at addressing the opioid abuse problem in the state of Georgia in a variety of ways. The bill passed the Senate Health and Human Services Committee by committee substitute on Thursday, February 9.

Transportation

SB 6 sponsored by Sen. Steve Gooch (R – Dahlonega), creates a statewide regional transit council to address regional solutions to issues of infrastructure for transit. The bill passed the Senate Transportation Committee on Tuesday, February 7, and awaits action in the Senate Rules Committee.

HB 160 sponsored by Rep. Kevin Tanner (R – Dawsonville), creates the Georgia Commission on Transit Governance and Funding to study and address the needs of mass transportation. The bill passed the House Transportation Committee by substitute on Thursday, February

Below are the notes taken by Ms. Andrea Kay Smith during our January 16th Neighborhood Association Meeting. Reminder that our next meeting will take place at Mt. Welcome Baptist Church (on Parker Ave) on February 20th.

Julius did a fantastic job & received good response from over 20 residents who attended as we acknowledged MLK & Falcons & created List for 2017 that Veronica took notes on.

Parks & Rec Victoria Burgos (404-371-2188) made a good presentation about how she can help B/B Community Garden.

To reduce crime in the B/B Park & at the Lake, Victoria suggested Officer Balkeos be called 770-652-8579.

Deacon John Whitaker (404-377-1668) insisted someone call him to confirm ELTNA meeting which was not done for this meeting. The room we usually meet in was under repair & we had to be rerouted to a room in the main sanctuary. Signs were made & Charles Dorsey & Willy Fletcher helped direct people.

There were 5 residents who were attending for the 1st time; 2 that wanted to be added to Nextdoor which I will do.

2/28/17 10am someone from ELTNA must attend the Commissioners Meeting in Manuel Maloof Bldg @ Trinity & Commerce in downtown Decatur to speak about speed bumps on Hillside Dr. Joe Przedwiecki is coordinating this effort, so let him know you are attending (email above).

A developer who purchased 3 houses on Marion Circle near the Lake would like to help ELTNA. The contact person is Hunter Marx 678-548-1232.

Remember at the beginning of every meeting to thank Mt. Welcome & disclaimer about opinions expressed are ELTNA.

Has anyone made contact with ELTNA Board member Sharon Curtis?

Thanks to ELTNA resident Grace Pass who lives on Cogar & has agreed to put a Yard sign up @ 2nd Ave. Dianne Fowler is doing a good job getting Yard signs out to neighbors. Charles Dorsey always puts one out at the church for which I gave him a gift last night.

Welcome to the new ELTNA website! If you have any suggestions or feedback for the new website, please comment on this post with your ideas. This site is intended to be continually improved, so we appreciate any comments you can offer!

We’re on the lookout for photos that will help make this neighborhood website a more lively place. If you have any pictures of community events or our beautiful neighborhood that you’d like to share, please let us know in the comments and we’ll reach out with a way to get the photos to us.

For the holiday season, we are participating in our local charity drive to bring toys and gifts to children in need. We are sponsoring the following children, and we need your help to ensure that these kids have wonderful holidays!!

There are two ways to get into the spirit of giving and help a child in need.

You can make a donation, in any amount that will go toward the purchase of a gift for a child.

You can purchase a gift for a child, and drop it off to our donation coordinator.

The list below gives the age and gender of each sponsored child, and their requested gifts. Please bring your cash donation or your gift donation to the amazing Veronica Gilyard!! You can reach her at 770-256-3270 and bring donations to her home, located at 1964 Hooper Street.

Child’s Gender and Age: Requested Gifts

Female, 12 years: Size 6 Boots, Jewelry, nail polish

Female, 4 years: Frozen doll, Hello Kitty, Power Wheel

Female, 5 years: Frozen, Toys, Dolls

Male, 7 years: Spider-man stuff, Trucks and card, Gift card

Male, 19 months: Clothes (2-T), books, toy cars

Female, 3 years: Hello Kitty, Frozen, Educational toy

Female, 4 years: Little Mermaid, Educational toys

Male, 5 years: Action figure toys, Spider-man, toy cars or truck

Female, 3 years: Minnie Mouse, educational toys

We had such a wonderful variety of donations last year, and we would like to go above and beyond this year! Our deadline for receiving donations is DECEMBER 12, so don’t delay!

If you have any questions, please contact Veronica Gilyard, at 770-256-3270.

The holiday season has begun. We’re probably still finishing our candy, Thanksgiving is right around the corner, and stores are already selling decorations for Christmas and Hannukah. We might as well go ahead and get a New Years party hat too, right? The main event at our next meeting, which is also our last monthly meeting of the year, is that we will vote to elect the board members of our Association that were nominated at our October meeting.

We have seen a wonderful increase in participation in neighborhood events this year and also in the way we are communicating with one another and our county officials. We had a lot of visits from them and it helped to encourage the strong relationship that is so necessary if we want to improve this area. Some of the offices that pledged their support to our cause are the Dekalb County Police South Precinct, Code Enforcement, the Fire Department, the Marshall’s office, and the Board of Commissioners. We plan to work with them in 2016 to continue to build on the foundation we have created.

So, what are some of the challenges we’ll face in 2016 and how can we work to solve them? I’ll skip to the answer before listing any of them specifically. We must communicate more and work together on an increasing scale and actively involve our county officials in supporting our mission to improve this are.

Burglaries & Robberies
Follow basic safety guidelines like lighting the outside of your house, securing your doors and windows, adding cameras, watching out for your neighbors’ homes, and calling 911 anytime you see anything suspicious. We can also work more closely with the police to identify likely suspects

Unkept or Abandoned Properties
Make sure these homes are known to the Police, Code Enforcement, the Dekalb Vacant Home registry or Foreclosure registry, and the Dekalb Co. Board of Health. Talk with the owners (if possible) to see if they need some kind of help in maintaining their home.

Speeding through our Streets
Commission a speed study for those streets to see if they qualify for speed humps and if they do, work to get home owners to sign the agreement to have them installed.

Neighbors in Need
Identify who needs help and what kind. Work to find resources through groups that offer assistance of that kind. Some of these are non-profits that focus on seniors or low income households, churches, county and state government offices, local grants, and us!

Drugs and Prostitution
Continue to talk with the Police, especially their Drug Task Force and Vice team. Map these homes, report them to the police and monitor their progress. Invite the local news. The same houses and corners have been the problem for more than a decade, sometimes several! Get to know the County Solicitor’s and DA’s offices and their staff. Enroll and participate in the Court Watch program. Host neighborhood sit-ins at these locations and invite the Police to join us!

Communication
Help us reach you through volunteering to hand out flyers, passing information on to your neighbors with no internet access, invite friends and neighbors to join our social media sites like Facebook and Nextdoor if you see they are not on there. Come to the monthly neighborhood association meetings and socialize with your neighbors. The better we know one another, the more we talk, right?

Social Events and Community Outreach
Part of building this community involves getting together in a social environment to get to know one another better. Sometimes, we should work to better the neighborhood physically together and others, we should get out and do things like have dinner together or play Bingo. We can cook out at the lake, clean up the streets, hold beautification events, and so much more but we need YOUR participation to make these things happen. Without volunteers, there is no event. This will be a far stronger focus in 2016 so please give us your ideas and lend a hand to help make it happen. Thanks in advance for helping!

Let’s all come together in 2016 and continue to strengthen our friendships with one another. Let’s work on some projects, beautify the neighborhood, get together at least once a month, and show our appreciation for all those around us who work every day to make East Lake Terrace a wonderful place to live!

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Our Mission

Our mission is to create a safe and friendly community by addressing quality of life issues that include: public safety, abandoned property and animals, beautification, and an overall commitment to empowering residents through education, support for one another, and community involvement.

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